Another older game. I have only played the bigger game on my PC and it felt a bit too big and too long. The dice version seems as a perfect fit to me. And this is most probably the most played game for me (partly because of it being available on Yucata). It’s a dice game, so you can’t really have a long term strategy (well you can, kind of). So it is a highly tactical game. You have to constantly accommodate to dice rolls, your opponent moves. And that’s what attracts me in this game the most. It’s a fairly simple game. You take turns to roll two dice and then select where to put them. There are 3 trucks with 3 spots on each one. You can put all dice on one or split them. Then you opponents choose which truck to take and put selected dice into they area. You collect different species of animals and get points for that. You also try to be the first to get all animals of every specie to get bonus points. But if you already have one category filled, you get foul points for getting too many animals of that kind. So it’s a balance seeking game. Should you only take a few animals at once and try to always have all categories with empty spots to not get foul points (but on the other hand, not getting the bonuses)? Or should you at some point rush to complete categories to get those precious bonus points and force the game end (it ends when one player has only one kind of animals not filled). You can also force opponents to take too many animals by making one truck too tempting, so they would be afraid to leave it for you. And there are coins also to mitigate foul points and to give a bit of additional points. The game is very quick, yet it has a sweet spot on being quick and providing enough tactical choices (sometimes even brainburny). Of course, there is a bit of luck involved with dice rolling, but i don’t mind it in this game that much. This is also only a two players game for me (it can be played with 4), because with more players it gets too chaotic and tactical choices diminish quickly. So i will rate it a tad lower because of this limitation, but it is still a great game. 8/10

As a follow up to Family Showdown channel’s list i have created my own Top 10 list of favourite board games mechanisms. I have listed a few games for every mechanism that i think represent it the best (of course, of those i have actually played). Btw, i have not consulted any official list of mechanisms when doing this Top 10. So i have came up with some on my own 🙂

10. Set Collection

One of the first mechanisms you learn when starting playing modern board games (and even some traditional card games). This is also often an additional mechanism in a board game. Like in Ticket to Ride where you have to collect sets of cards of a same color to be able to build tracks. In Tokaido you collect painting cards to create a beautiful panorama (and get lots of points by doing that). There are also small games, which are all about set collection, like Jaipur or Coloretto.

9. Dice Allocation

Not just rolling of dice, but allocation their results to various actions. This feels a bit like worker placement, but in this case results on the dice matter and changes the outcome. My favorite in this genre is my most played game – Zooloretto: The Dice Game. This is essentially “i divide – you choose” type of game. When you roll the dice and select how to spread them among the trucks. And then your opponent chooses whether to take some dice or roll more. In The Voyages of Marco Polo you place dice with their values on the spots to get the according number of resources. Dice Town also allows you to select how to use your “hand” of dice. And Nations: The Dice game lets you combine a few dice into a single value to purchase a card.

As i often play games with two (live or on BGA/Yucata sites), even when a game is meant for larger count of players, i’ve decided to share a list of my best games meant for larger number of players which can be played with two. Most often i play with two because of a faster gameplay. Because when playing on the Internet it already takes very long as you take a turn or few per day. So this way you are not forgetting what you were going to do in the game, your turns come faster. Also, some games, in my opinion, have too much chaos and luck when playing with larger count of players.

10.Firenze

I often play this game with three. But it is also much fun with two. There is still plenty of space for competition with a fewer count of players. Also, when you only have one opponent you can have some long-term strategies without fearing, that someone will grab the card you need or take the spot you want on a tower.

9. The Palaces of Carrara

Same as with Firenze, this game is well enough with 3 players, but when you play with two there is a wider strategic space. Also the game lasts a bit longer and you manage to build more buildings, while when playing with three the game often ends unexpectedly.

8. Voluspa

The game is interesting enough with 3 players as well, because you can always have a better turn while two others fight with each other. But this game is very simple and fast, so in general i tend to want to play it with only two. Then it gives a feeling like you are playing chess or a similar game.